Fourteen volunteers showed up yesterday to continue the “dog” cleanup project. Uruguayan, Canadian, American, South African, and Cuban. Sweating profusely, we filled two volquetes to overflowing, including

• five refrigerators
• three televisions
• one stove

We did “meet” the dogs. Apparently the all-but-immobile husband, closed in the house with the dogs on a hot day, decided he’d had enough. He had already insisted that no one touch a pile of old tires (even though there is no vehicle even close to functioning — the volquete driver will remove the four rusty hulks at no cost, presumably for their scrap value). Husband opened the door. Dogs poured out, barking, making a couple of people understandably nervous. The vet Mariana and I fanned out and helped drive them back inside. They were no problem; obviously loved.

It appeared there were about 25 dogs, not 44. And it seems that ASH (Animales sin Hogar, Animals without Homes), the private animal rescue agency, announced some time ago that they had received 50 or so dogs from an individual. So our speculation is that somehow someone rescued them from Telma, who OBTW is now Marlena (?).

We disassembled the roof that had blown off, and consolidated sheet metal, so the lot is somewhat organized and the dogs have more usable ground. Next phase would be construction, but the person in charge of that is sidelined with a sinus infection.

Meanwhile, the lot-clearing and construction project mission-creeps into a open-ended social work project for low-functioning hoarders. For which others are better suited than I.

Our Canadian neighbors, who put on a wonderful Christmas day get-together, also use the occasion to collect dog food for an impoverished woman in Montevideo who has 44 dogs. Sound like a lot? Last year it was 77.

Delivering the donated food  — 260 kilos of it — they were appalled by what they saw. So they organized. Friday morning we arrived, I and another guy with our weed-eaters with brush blades, others with clippers, all with work gloves and most with Wellies. In a few hours, we had changed the overgrown property dramatically.

Tomorrow, we go to fill a dumpster (volquete; I did boring posts about them here and here) with various trashed appliances, and to continue clearing a path for one of four abandoned vehicles to be dragged away. I will use a “found” concrete column to straighten the leaning fence in front.

Next: repair the roof that blew off because the beams had been eaten by termites, make the house a little livable, install a fence to segregate dogs. At present, when we arrive, she has to put them inside. And what does inside look like?

Glad you asked.

Some money is needed for materials. Though no organized appeal has been made, one person (also referenced in one of the boring volquete posts) has made a very generous donation.

Telma expressed her gratitude for our effort: I feel that I’m cared for; that I’m not alone.

Finding volunteer opportunities in Uruguay can be a challenge (everything, it seems, is covered by a low-paid government job), so I’m grateful to our neighbors for organizing this.

Our estimate for repairs is US$ 3,500.

¡Adelante!